THIS SCRIPT IS FOR THE GREEN SERIES TAPE ELEVEN

The Symbolism of Revelation --

This script has been written in such a way that it is easy for the listener to understand the main story.

Could you please consider this in your translation, and keep it simple. Thank you.

(FIRST SPEAKER)

When we come to the Book of Revelation, we must ask the following questions.

Who wrote it?

To whom was it written?

When was it written?

Why was it written?

What is the historical context?

To answer our questions, it was written approximately AD 95. It was written by John the Apostle, even though he was a very old man. John wrote to 7 real churches, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon, Thyatira, Sardis Philadelphia, and Laodecia’.

John was in prison on Patmos, which is a small island near Turkey. His crime? He was a Christian. We know from history that in 95 the Roman emperor was called Domitian. Domitian was a fanatic about emperor worship. Now by emperor worship, we mean that once a year every citizen of the Roman Empire, would have to stand in front of a statue, raise his right hand, and say the Emperor is Lord, and God. The citizens would then take a pinch of incense, and drop it into the flames.

Domitian began every one of his letters, ‘Your Lord and your God Domitian speaks’. And when he entered a theatre, everyone had to stand and state, ‘Our Lord and Lady, our God’. Many Christians would not stand, and simply confess, ‘Jesus Christ is Lord’.

Therefore when John refused to bow to the Emperor, he was imprisoned, and he worked in the marble mines, John had chains around his wrists and feet; he lived on bread and water, as he had done for a number of years.

The word witness in the book of Revelation actually means martyr. As far as these early Christians were concerned, if you are going to give witness or testimony that Jesus Christ is God, you have a martyr mentality. This book was written to people under persecution of such a degree, that if they opened their mouth, and confessed they were Christians, they had better already have faced up to martyrdom. A martyrdom of real bloodshed and death, or a martyrdom, which was a living martyrdom, banishment like John, or the loss of home or job.

So as we come to this book, we must take into account the Christians it was written to. Just supposing that this Book was only about future prophecy; if that were the case, then we have got to find it plainly stated to those first-century readers. They must understand that when they’d finished reading this book, they will have to close it and say, we understand that there is nothing in this book for us, it awaits another 2000 years before its fulfilment, because if God wrote this book to the people that are alive today, and did not tell those first-century readers, who thought it was for them, then God is cheating them. Unless of course, God put in the letter, ‘this letter is not for you’.

The only way to read the book of Revelation is by reading it over the shoulder of the first century believers. It was only written to us, as the whole Word of God was written to us. We will never understand it until we understand what it meant to the first century believers.

In verse 3 the Book promises to be a unique blessing to everyone who reads it. ‘Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy’. Now that is suddenly taken out of the context of the first century readers and is now for us, but we must read it looking over their shoulder.

In the very first verse of Revelation the original Greek is ‘He sent and made it known by signs and symbols’. When you read of a Lamb that has been slain, everyone knows that the lamb is Jesus. Now if you use that same logic for every other part of Revelation, then it is a very simple book to understand.

We will find a lamb that is full of eyes and horns, and we will also find a woman sitting on a beast, and she is carrying a cup full of blood.

This is a book full of signs and symbols, picture numbers, and picture colours. So when we meet a city called Jerusalem, even though we do not know what it is, we know it is NOT Jerusalem. For a symbol is pointing away to something else.

If we are going to look at a book that was written 2,000 years ago, and interpret it by looking at today’s newspaper, we are heading for a lot of misinterpretation. So our aim in this work is to bring the pictures and symbols to life. We couldn’t possibly give you all of the symbols, echoes and allusions on this tape. So we have set out to give you the big picture and then you can fill in the blank spaces yourself.

There is no chronological order to this book, for example chapter seven might be relevant to what is happening to the local church in a city in southern India. Whilst in the next city the local church there may be experiencing chapter thirteen. The local church in Peking China, may be going through the tribulation, while the local church in Moscow, Russia is not. The early believers were being thrown into a den of lions; try handing them a book of theology that said the tribulation would not take place for another 2,000 years or so. In fact in the very first chapter of this book the writer tells us that they are in the tribulation. All of the events in this book are about the first and second coming of Christ. The following interpretation of the Revelation symbols has been in the church since the 1^st century.

As we begin to feel the atmosphere of this book, we begin to feel we are in an opera – it is a cosmic opera. There is a choir and there is a lot of singing. You have gone to your cave and you are looking over the Mediterranean sea, above you is the bright dome of the sky – behind you is the dark cave, where a trumpet sounds, and you see in symbolic form a picture of Jesus, and then he tells you write, you grab your pen and you begin to write as he dictates the letter, to the seven churches.

The result was that the book of the Revelation, written in Greek, it is the worst Greek of the New Testament. It was obviously written by someone who did not have time to look at the last sentence. Whoever wrote the book of Revelation, is writing it as fast as he can, following the pictures and symbols all of the time.

So the code that interprets the symbols that reveals Jesus must be so utterly simple that the newest Christian can break the code. God makes it so simple, He puts the book at the end of the Bible, gives us 65 books which come before it, and then fills the last book with echoes and allusions to every other book of the Bible. Almost every verse of the book of Revelation has a direct or implied reference to another part of the Bible, and as you go back to that other part of the Bible, you find the symbol.

What about when the water becomes blood? What about when rocks fall from the sky? That is in the OLD TESTAMENT. What about the 2 witnesses? Read Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy tells you what the two witnesses are. God made it so simple, A heathen comes along reads it and says, I knew these Christians were stupid, he doesn’t know what it means, the code is only for the initiated, those who are born again and have an Old Testament in their hands. The whole of the book of revelation takes place between the first and second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you DELETE the chapters and verses, the outline of this book is very simple. There are seven visions.

The first vision, which is from chapters 1- 3, shows us Christ in the middle of His Church. The second vision is from chapter 4 through chapter 7, which portrays the Church in trial and persecution. The third vision, which is chapters 8 to 11, shows that the Church is protected– it is triumphant, in fact, God avenges the Church.

The fourth vision chapters 12 through to 14, Christ in His church opposes the satanic trinity. The fifth vision, which is chapters 15 and 16, shows us the wrath of God, which falls on those who will not repent. The sixth vision, which is chapters 17 through to 19, shows us the fall of Babylon and the destruction of all that oppose God. The final vision is chapters 20 to 22, which are about the judgement of Satan, and the eternal victory of Christ, forever and ever.

(NEW SPEAKER)

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER ONE

The first vision: ‘I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet.’ We are immediately into the world of symbolism. He did not say he heard a trumpet. He said he heard a voice 'like the sound of a trumpet'. Now we go back into the Old Testament to the 19^th chapter of Exodus, and there you find that it was a sound 'like that of a trumpet', that called the Israelites into the presence of God, to hear the words of their covenant God speaking to them. The trumpet John heard, is a call to the whole covenant people of the New Testament. – Come and hear the words of the New Covenant. Come and understand what your God has done for you.

John then sees a vision of Jesus, but what he saw was beyond words and the only way he could describe what he saw, was by the symbolism, of how Jesus chose to present Himself.

He is wearing the long flowing robe. That was the robe of the ancient judges. The person, who John sees, is the one who is the final authority among men. He is the one who is man’s final and ultimate judge.

His hair is as white as snow. A symbol among judges is white hair; if you go to England the judges there still wear white hair. You notice that in Proverbs, it talks about white hair being the sign of maturity and wisdom, except that in this case the hair is as white as snow. In Daniel chapter 7 you read of one who is called the Ancient of Days. This is the Eternal One, whose hair is as white as snow, here is ultimate wisdom; here is ultimate discernment, here in this person is the WISDOM & JUDGEMENT of God.

His eyes were as flames of fire. When Isaiah met this one whose eyes were as a flaming fire, of course it does not state that in Isaiah 6 but the intimation is there – he suddenly met with someone who knew him perfectly, and said, ‘Woe to me’.

His voice was like the sound of many waters. All through the Bible, water speaks of life, and this is where man’s spirit drinks, or is fed, so here is a waterfall of life. When you stand by Niagara or Victoria Falls, it is an awful, frightening, majestic sound of great power. It is many sounds that make up just one sound in perfect harmony, that strikes wonder in the heart.

His words were like a two edged sword. I will never forget His voice, and the words that were in His voice. It sounded like a sword coming out of His mouth. Remember the Scripture in Hebrews chapter 4 it says that the Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.

His feet were like burnished bronze in the fire. Those of you that have studied Exodus will remember that whenever you find brass in the Bible, if it is in a symbolical context, it is speaking of judgment, and so the judgment is in His feet. So wherever He is, there is the judgement.

His face shone like the sun. 2^nd Corinthians chapter 4 verse 6 says; For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. When John met Jesus in the cave, he did not put his head on His shoulder, he fell at His feet as one dead! John saw the fullness of deity, expressed in glorified manhood.

You have seen pictures or models of the lamp stand, which was in the Temple. It has seven branches. Three on either side, and the centre one, seven. John said, I saw this One and He stood in the midst of seven lamp stands. And in the last verse of this chapter Jesus Himself gives us the interpretation of that Vision.

He said the seven lamp stands are the seven churches and so you have at the centre, the glorified ascended Jesus, and vitally united to Him you have the seven churches. So not only is He the Lord of the Church, but also He is the Life of the Church.

Ephesus had lost its first love Smyrna, they were under heavy persecution because they would not join the unions. Pergamom – they had yielded on the inside to the world system and the flesh, as had Thyatira also. Sardis was being attacked on the inside by false religion. Philadelphia was quivering under heavy persecution, while Laodicea had its jumble sales and rolled in its affluence and said we are the best and the biggest, you should have seen our Sunday school last week. And to Laodicea Jesus said, I have excommunicated the entire denomination, there is no more church in Laodicea. However, if anybody should hear my voice, above all your committee meetings, I am standing on the outside, knocking the door, and if you want to come outside we can have fellowship together.

This is the only Vision in the book that makes the Christian cringe. All the others make you dance for joy. This is the first Vision, and without this one being listened to, the others mean nothing.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER FOUR & FIVE

In Exodus chapter 19 Moses was summoned into the presence of God by a trumpet sound. As Moses went into that living presence of God on the Mountain, he saw something, and God sent him back down the Mountain to make a model of what he saw - we call that model, the Tabernacle.

In the centre of the Tabernacle would be the Ark of the Covenant, that box made of acacia wood overlaid with gold, inside the box would be the Ten Commandments. The Ark of the Covenant, would be rested on top of a slab of solid gold, gold always speaks of Divine Nature. This was called the Throne of the God of Israel. By the throne were two cherubim that stood before the Presence of God.

Immediately in front of that Ark there was a very thick curtain, and on that curtain there were inscribed pictures of the cherubim, so the cherubim were around the throne of God and they were on the curtain in front. That curtain was a separating curtain. You could not get to the presence of God; due to the curtain separating you. Immediately on this side of the curtain, and therefore up against the Ark but separated, there was the golden altar. And the golden altar was where the Israelite in the person of His priest would worship God.

There would also be a seven-branched lamp stand that was always burning in the Holy Place; it would be on the right hand side of the Golden Altar. On the left side there was a table with twelve loaves, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. There was also a goblet of wine, which spoke of the joy of the Lord.

Now outside you come to the courtyard, and you come to a laver, something full of water, with which to wash the sacrifices; also you would see the altar of brass, where they killed the animals, where the blood was shed. One time in the year, on the Day of Atonement, the animal was slain at that altar, and its blood was sprinkled on to the top of the mercy seat, and because the blood was sprinkled, the Israelites could come into God’s presence, because (a) an animal had died and its blood was sprinkled, and (b) the blood was brought there by a representative, the High Priest.

Now Moses saw all of that on the Mountain, and then he made the scale model. After having read chapters 4 and 5 you will see immediately, that what John saw is what Moses saw. Only John now sees it taken to its total fulfilment. Moses saw it as a forecast. Now Christ has come, it is no longer a model it is reality! You will notice there are many parallels to the book of Exodus. There is a door open in Heaven; there is a trumpet voice that calls him through the door.

John stepped into the ultimate "Holy of Holies." The first thing he saw was the Ark of the Covenant, and he said. ‘Behold a throne’. John sees it in cosmic proportion, and he says, Behold the throne of God. But then right in front of that Throne, he said there was something like a sea of glass.

That is the veil that separates man from the throne. He says that surrounding the throne there were these strange living creatures, they are the real cherubim, not embroidered on a curtain. He saw twenty-four elders on thrones. The twelve loaves stood for the tribes of Israel, and the twenty-four stands for Israel in its full magnitude.

He said I saw seven spirits, burning before the throne, that was the 7 branched lamp stand, of the Holy Spirit, and of course when we come to the Lamb as it had been slain, there is no priest, for the priest is the Lamb, and He comes right up to the Throne with his own blood, and with the Lamb the whole Church, or the whole of Israel is there.

The scripture declares that the One who sat on the Throne, is like a Jasper stone and Sardis in appearance, and there is a rainbow coming out of the Throne with lightening. A jasper stone is crystal, crystal clear. This speaks of the absolute holiness of God. Sardis is a fiery red, an angry red, angry against sin. John is like a dead man with no hope. But then the Covenant rainbow gives him hope.

Twenty-four elders, what does that mean? You come in the figure 24 to an idea, which is basic to the whole Bible – that idea is the number 12. To find out what the picture is, we must first understand the language of numbers that the early Christians understood. The number 3 is the number of the Father The Son and The Holy Spirit. The number 4 symbolises the four corners of the world. 3x4=12 this symbolises God in His Tri-unity, working out His purpose in the whole world. So as God worked out His purpose in the Old Testament, you find 12 tribes make up the nation of Israel.

The Bible often speaks in the New Testament, that the church is built on the foundation of the twelve apostles. So here you have the 24 elders 12 from the Old Testament, and 12 from the New Testament, this is the picture. The 24 Elders are a symbol of the Church of all ages. The scripture goes on to say that, these Elders are clothed in white garments. White throughout the book of Revelation consistently speaks of righteousness.

You are part of the 24 elders. The 24, is a picture, of you plus all the other Christians in the world, plus all of the other Christians that have ever been, plus all of the believing Hebrews that have ever been since the promise was given to Abraham. This is the Church of all the ages, which is the 24.

It says there were these strange living creatures surrounding the throne, we know that they are cherubim because of Ezekiel chapters 1-10. You remember, in the book of Genesis when man fell, and he was expelled from the Garden of Eden, the Cherubim guarded the way to the Tree of Life, it was not so much to keep Adam out from the Tree of Life, the idea more is that they are guaranteeing that the way to the Tree of Life is being kept open. That is why they were on the veil of the Tabernacle. The Cherubim were the living guarantee that one day man would be able to go back inside the veil, and right there at the throne of God, be able to partake of the Tree of Life.

The scroll was sealed with seven seals. Now John said he saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to open the book and to break the seal?’ ‘I began to weep greatly because no-one was found worthy to open the book and to look into it. I began to weep greatly, is of significance too. Whatever is in that book, is the rest of the revelation. Whatever was in that book, was not for 2,000 years later; it was vital to John right there and then.

It was in the right hand of Him who sat on the Throne. That is the right hand of power. So this book, and remember it is all symbols, was in the hand of the sovereign God of power, whatever this book is, it is connected with God’s sovereignty, His ruling of His world. We suggest to you that putting all that together meant that in this book were the decrees of God. The will of God if you like, here was all that God purposed for mankind. Here were all the joy-filled plans that God had for man, and when man fell, it was sealed with the seven seals of his sin.

So it can only be a man without sin that can open the book, and release sinful men to the purpose and the will of God. But there is not one in Heaven. Angels are no use, they have never sinned. God is no use because He is not a man.

It was at that point, that John heard an Elder say, ‘Stop weeping, behold the Lion that is of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome, so as to open the book and its seven seals, and I saw between the Throne, with the four living creatures among the Elders a Lamb standing as if slain, having 7 horns and 7 eyes which are the 7 spirits of God sent out into all the earth, and he came and took the book out of the right hand of Him Who sat on the Throne.

Horns in the Bible speak of power. 3 speaks of the tri-unity. 4 speaks of the four corners of the world.

3 plus 4=seven. Seven is the number of God, God in perfect action, so here is God’s perfect power a little Lamb as if it had just been slain, and nothing is hidden from this lamb. It sees in perfection everything that ever was.

The Lion of the Tribe of Judah, is a reference to Genesis chapter 49 when Jacob was blessing his sons he says, ‘The kingship shall never depart from Judah until Shiloh comes.’ Shiloh means ‘He whose right it is’ or Shiloh means ‘The worthy One’ Said John, ‘I turned and saw the Lion which is from the Tribe of Judah, I saw He Whose right alone it is to rule, I saw He who alone is worthy.’

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER SIX

The first seal: The white horse is the gospel, and the rider is obviously Jesus because in chapter 19 it says that One who was riding the white horse, is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. So we see that the Lamb has been crowned. Now the good news of the coronation must be announced to the whole world – the Gospel must be preached. And the white horse gallops across the Universe proclaiming that the Lamb has risen, the Lamb has been crowned.

The second seal: The word translated sword in the Greek language is a special kind of sword; it is a sword of sacrifice. The bloody horse comes galloping after the white one. Every time the Gospel is preached there comes hard on the heels of that Gospel the sacrifice of the Saints. This is nothing to do with war; it has everything to do with persecution.

The bloody horse did not come galloping in and push the white horse out the way and take over. This one was given permission. God grants the persecution that follows the preaching of the gospel.

The third seal: The oil and the wine were the luxury items. There’s plenty of wheat, there is plenty of barley, there is plenty of oil and plenty of wine, if only you have the money for it. That is not famine. What is it then? It is another form of persecution, you may meet the red horse, you may meet the black horse, and suddenly you are in a position where you are scraping for a whole day’s wages, just to buy enough food. It is an economical kind of persecution – the food is there, but you can’t touch it. Luxury items are there, but the one that confesses Christ as King, can never get to them. This may not be so in Canada as we write, but it is so in Saudi Arabia, and other countries as we write, and it was so for the early believers.

The fourth seal: Do you realise that most of our brothers and sisters in this world are suffering brothers and sisters. Most of the world of Christians is presently under the hooves of the red horse or the black horse. Then there is also the pale green horse, which we call natural disasters, and the Lamb that reins is just telling us, I have control there too. There are certain troubles that the world goes through, and Christians go through that are just the same. But as the Christian goes through them, he goes through them with hope, because he knows that this couldn’t happen but for the Lamb who says, ‘unleash the seals’.

The fifth seal: So here are the people who have been slain by the red horse, people who have already been martyred. The picture here is of a sacrificial altar. They are saying with a loud voice, ‘How long oh Lord, Holy and True wilt thou refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ This passage of scripture again shows us very clearly that this is the period of time between the first and second coming of Christ.

The justice of God to judge sinners, is part of God’s goodness. When you think about it, you cannot live sanely without the wrath of God. How long oh Lord? These people died and they still said, ‘How long’ For salvation cannot be understood as absolutely complete, until the final judgment takes place, and only when sin has been finally judged, put away, and Satan been eternally bound, only then can we say ‘It is done’. It was accomplished at the cross, but no Christian can rest easy until it is finalised.

The sixth seal: What John sees here is a gigantic, horrific picture, as John sees the whole universe caving in, the very earth on which men have their rebellion against God, is caving in beneath them, with the sky being rolled up like a scroll.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER SEVEN

The following list, is not a list of Israel or the twelve tribes of Israel, but rather it is a picture. If it were a list of Israel, it must begin with Reuben. Because Reuben was the first born. Number two on the list would be Ephraim, but he has been left out. That’s a bit like leaving out Washington DC from the states of America. Dan is also left out, while Joseph has been included, but there is no tribe of Joseph, because Joseph gave his inheritance to his two sons, Ephraim and Manassah, who are themselves both tribes, but there is no such thing as the tribe of Joseph.

The tribe of Levi has been included, but Levi was never included, because they were priests, they didn’t own any land, and therefore had no inheritance. NO this is not a list of Israel at all, this is another picture. The first born in this list is Judah. The leader of this picture is Judah.

Two or three chapters of Genesis describe why each tribe was called by the name it was, it goes into the details of how the mother felt the day she got pregnant, how she felt when she was having the baby, and why the mother called the child that name. The events around the birth of those boys were so arranged by God, that when you put the names together, you suddenly hear the whole gospel in the names of those boys. Now we can understand why one has to be left out here, and one has to be left out there, because they do not fit this picture. This picture is an unfolding revelation of Jesus Christ.

The first name is Judah. Judah means Praised or celebrated.

The second name is Reuben. The name Reuben means Behold a Son.

The third one is called Gad. Gad means a Great Company,

The fourth name is Asher. The name Asher means ‘Happy’, ‘Joy filled’.

The fifth name is Naphtali. Naphtali means to wrestle and overcome.

The sixth name is Manasseh. Manasseh means ‘forgetting’. Joseph gave that name to his son – remember when Joseph was sold down the river to Egypt and thrown into prison as a slave, finally after it was all over, he was made prime minister, he married and had his son Manasseh – finally I have forgotten all my troubles, and I have forgotten all the ill that was done to me.

The seventh name is Simeon. Simeon means ‘hearing’ ‘My sheep hear my voice’ this is another key verse to the early part of Revelation – He who has ears to hear, let him hear ‘

The eighth name is Levi. Levi means ‘joined to’.

The ninth name is Issachar. Issachar means ‘A price was paid’.

The tenth named is Zebulon which means a dwelling-place. Ephesians 2.20 says that we have become the dwelling place of God through the Spirit.

The eleventh mentioned is Joseph. Joseph means ‘Adding, fruitful’

Then lastly number twelve Benjamin. Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin, and as she was dying, she took the little child, and because of the horror and agony of her death, she named him "Banoni" and Banoni means ‘Son of my deep sorrow’. The Father would have none of it, and he changed the name of Banoni to Benjamin, which means ‘Son of my right hand’. This is a perfect picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Banoni-Benjamin. He is the Son of my sorrow, and after the sorrow was over, he arose again and became the Son of his Father’s right hand.

And so this great company could be looked at from all those twelve different angles, and you could say, this is the Israel of God, Israel is not a nation like India or France, but it is a nation of believers with a heartfelt faith for God. All through the Old Testament Israel is seen as the vine. Jesus said I am the true vine! In other words I am the true Israel of God. The Israel of God can only be found in Jesus. The Bible is about HIM, and the book of Revelation is about Him. The first sentence in the book of Revelation states, "This is the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The true Israel of God starts with the promise made to Abraham. The Israel of God is made up of all of the Old Testament believers that are looking forward to the promised Messiah. The promise is completed in the finished work of Christ. Now when all of the gentiles, that is, all of the Jews and non Jews, that are cut off from God’s covenant in Christ. When all of the gentiles have come in, then Israel will be completed and saved. God told Jacob to change his name from Jacob to Israel. A lot of Hebrew names have different variations of meanings Israel means ‘To be a prince with God’ Israel also means ‘To rule with God.’ Israel also means, ‘To be ruled by God’ Therefore for a man to be part of Gods Israel, and to rule with God, the man must first be broken and ruled by God.

The Lion of the Tribe of Judah leads Israel, the complete Church of God. Now it says that each one of them was sealed. A seal in the Bible speaks of ownership. Many slaves had the name of their owner stamped on to their forehead. They were sealed, they were owned, and if someone owned you, they looked after you.

What about the number, 144,000? We are back to those 12’s again. 3x4 is 12, and 3 x 4 is 12, 12 x 12 is 144,? So we are back again to the 12 of the Old Testament, 12 of the New Testament, and 12 x 12 gives us 144, but then it is x10 x10 x10. Ten is the perfection of number. You count 1-10, stop at 10 and begin at 1 again, so 10 is the perfection of number. Times 3 is the symbolic number of the Tri-unity. 144,000 gives me an idea, it does not speak of a number, and the idea is the perfect completed Church of the Old Testament and New Testament, the completed Israel of God the holy nation of all believers since the promise to Abraham. Within this number of 144,000 all of Israel is saved. You will notice that John said he heard the number, he didn’t see it.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER EIGHT & NINE

We have seen as the Visions unfold, that God has enthroned His Lamb upon the throne, and the world has rejected that Lamb. The Son has been exalted, the preaching of the Gospel has gone forth, and men have become angry rising against the Lamb upon the Throne, and they have persecuted the Church.

When the trumpets blow, men must face God. Exodus 19.16 – at the giving of the Law on Mt Sinai there it was that the trumpet of God sounded. It called all men to hear what God was saying. And what was God saying at Mount Sinai? It was the giving of His Law – that is, it was a manifestation of His holiness, when the trumpet sounded men were called to hear a manifestation of God’s holiness. They were to bring their lives up to the ten awesome commandments, and to realise this is absolute, and all men must be judged by that absoluteness.

In 1^st Kings chapter 1 verse 34 the trumpet sounded when a King was crowned. The sound of the trumpet announced to all who heard it, The King has been crowned.

The first trumpet: As we look at the first trumpet, and we see sinner-man meeting with God, upon the land that supports his life, and he discovers all around him that his very support of life is being taken away. You might remember that in Egypt the whole support of life was the River Nile, and that was the first plague that God placed upon them. He took their source of life, and turned it into death.

The second trumpet: That great mountain burned with fire, is a quotation taken from Jeremiah, which immediately tells us what that great mountain is. In Jeremiah 51.25 it says, Behold I am against you oh destroying mountain, who destroys the whole earth, declares the Lord and I will stretch forth my hand against you, and roll you down from the crabs and I will make you a burnt-out mountain. That mountain in Jeremiah 51 is the City of Babylon; or rather in symbolic language Babylon is the world system.

The third trumpet: Remember in the first chapter Jesus gave us the key to what a star meant. He said the star is the messenger, the angels that He held in His hands. So the flames that fall down from Heaven here is a fallen messenger, one that fell specifically to the waters. Waters always speak of life and it is where a man’s spirit drinks. Remember in the New Testament, Jesus said to the woman in John 4, ‘Whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give, shall never thirst again’ Remember He spoke similarly, ‘If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink, and out of him will flow rivers of living water’. Here the scripture is speaking of the philosophies, the teachings that feed men, and it says a demonic angel, a fallen spirit comes into all the philosophies of men whose name is wormwood, and wormwood is very bitter.

The fourth trumpet: Darkness, not total darkness, here you have the confusion, men can no longer see. Remember that 9^th plague of Egypt when that intense darkness came upon Egypt, while in Goshen where the Israelites were, it was still light.

The fifth trumpet: The fifth trumpet which is the first woe describes a horde of creatures being let loose from the pit. Notice that it says they were like locusts. That again takes us back to the plagues of Egypt. But these creatures only do harm to the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

The sixth trumpet: The 6^th Trumpet blows which is the second woe. And it says that permission for two hundred million to cross the River Euphrates – what does River Euphrates stand for? In the Old Testament the River Euphrates was the last barrier. The other side of the River Euphrates was Babylon, and whenever Babylon came to invade Israel, always they had to cross the River Euphrates first. So the River Euphrates became in the minds of the people, the barrier between them, and those persons who would destroy them.

(END OF SIDE ONE OF THE TAPE)

(SIDE TWO OF THE TAPE)

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER TEN & ELEVEN

Where is the church in all these six trumpets? God says, stop! I will show you where the church is, here is a measuring rod, measure the Holy of Holies, the golden alter of worship, and count the number of believers there, and the rest of the temple leave it, that is left to the world. But where John had measured, the world could not go in there.

Do you remember that Paul addressed the Corinthians saying; don’t you know that you are the Temple of the Living God, the Temple of the Holy Spirit? You are the Holy of Holies where God lives. Ephesians 2.21 says the same thing – that we are being built together as a holy temple, a habitation of God by the Spirit.

So what about the two witnesses: If this is a book of symbols, then obviously whatever this means, it does not mean two witnesses. Two witnesses are a symbol, an idea, and the Bible makes it very plain. Look at these two witnesses who prophecy, they are dressed in sackcloth, fire comes from their mouth, they have the power to turn water to blood, and to strike the earth with plagues. And they are called the two olive trees, two lamps that stand before the Lord of all the earth.

Now the symbolism there is so simple, in Deuteronomy it begins to talk about that, it says that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, let every word be established. So two witnesses is a shorthand symbol, for saying a perfect and complete testimony to truth. The Church is not only a worshipping community; the Church also is the perfect witness of God to truth. You can’t touch the worshipping community, but you can touch its public witness, that is why the two witnesses are killed.

The Holy of Holies in any persecuted country, is as strong today as it has ever been. But the two witnesses, the public testimony of the Church, are silenced. The scripture goes on and says they are dressed in sackcloth. The Old Testament will tell you quickly, that whenever a person repented, they always wore sackcloth. So here is a repentant Church that stands before an unrepentant world that has heard the trumpets of God.

It says fire came out of their mouth. The word of God is like fire, which consumes the enemy. That is an idea, which runs through the Old Testament. You will also find that they were able to shut the sky. Who shut the sky in the Old Testament? Elijah did. Does that mean that one of them was Elijah? No! This is a picture, that tells us that as Elijah stood in a world that had rebelled against God, and that world refused to repent – as Elijah stood in the midst of that world, he was a man who was the very incarnation of repentance, and he spoke forth on behalf of God, and he was able to prove his words by works, so the Church stands in a similar world with similar power, and can prove what they say. The Church, the whole Church is an Elijah in the middle of the world.

It also tells us that they are able to turn water into blood. Who did that? Moses did. That doesn’t mean to say that the other one is Moses, it means that another way of looking at this Church, is that as Moses stood with a congregation, which only half believed him, he stood against a world government, and a world system that hated him and his God, and Moses stood there. The testimony to truth in the middle of lies, even so the Church stands, the perfect testimony to truth, in the middle of a world that is set against God. And it says these are the two olive trees that stand before God in all the earth.

That comes from Zechariah Chapter 4. It says behold a seven-branched lamp stand. Also there were two olive trees by it, one on the right side and the other on the left side. We have already talked about that seven-branched lamp stand, and that is the Church, and standing beside it is another symbol, two olive trees which stand before the Lord in all the earth. The Church in all its power and witness.

The beast is world power. And this world power puts the two witnesses to death. It describes the city where they were put to death as Sodom, What was Sodom? Sodom was all manner of sexual perversion. What was Egypt? Egypt was the great power, the government.

Elijah thought he was the only remaining public witness, God said, not at all, not at all, I still have 7000 who have not bowed the knees to Baal. No one has touched the Holy of holies and no one can. That 7,000 is another symbolic Old Testament picture 7x10x10x10. The Old Testament is full of picture numbers. Jesus also spoke in picture numbers that his listeners understood. Do you remember in Matthew chapter eighteen Peter said to Jesus, ‘If my brother sins against me shall I forgive him up to seven times.’? Jesus replied, ‘No! Not up to seven times, but seventy times seven.’

You look across the world, in persecuted countries and ask where is the Church we can’t see it? The Church is doing very well, its voice may be silenced, and the two witnesses are laying in the street. The greatest judgment that can ever come upon a country, is when the only speaking voice of God on earth has been silenced. However, God treats the Church the same way as He treated Jesus. And it says that they were raised up.

The seventh trumpet: Proclaims God’s kingdom, with the redeemed moving into ecstatic praise and worship, whilst the unredeemed are unrepentant still shaking their fists at their creator.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER TWELVE

Our first question is, who is that woman? Again, as we open the Old Testament Scriptures, it becomes very very simple – the description given of that woman is almost the very same that Joseph gave of a great company of people called Israel who were yet to be born. Do you remember when Joseph came down to breakfast and told his dream, and he said, I saw the sun and the moon and he saw the stars bowing down, and here you have the very same words, that are used concerning that woman.

So it is a theme of the Old Testament, a woman was the Bride of Jehovah. For example Isaiah Chapter 50 verse 1. Also Isaiah 54 verse 4. Then Jeremiah 4.31 and Micah chapter 4 and so on.

So here is Israel the Bride of God, and pregnant with God’s child to fulfil the promise given to Abraham, that one day a Descendant will come, and all nations of the earth shall be blessed.

That is why Israel in the Old Testament was the chosen nation, because they carried the chosen ONE. Out of Israel came the man-child, Jesus Christ and now the chosen nation is only found in HIM, a holy nation, and a nation of believers. This is why in Paul’s 2^nd letter to the Corinthians chapter 1 verse 20 it says, "All of the promises of God are in Him to the glory of God." There was no New Testament at this time. So it is clear, that these are the promises that were made to Israel, and are now found in Christ, for all that believe in Christ.

Now standing in front of the woman was the dragon, so that when the woman gave birth, the dragon might devour her child. The Church of the New Testament is the woman delivered of that child.

Verse 9 interprets for us, the great dragon, the serpent of old, who is called the Devil. It says he has seven heads and each one was crowned. The number 7 is the number of fullness. It is normally spoken of God, of His fullness, but on this occasion it is spoken of the Devil, 7 heads with 7 crowns. It was a fullness of royalty. It was a royalty that could not be added to. 10 horns, 10 means completion of power or authority in power. It is saying that the Devil is the king on earth.

In the time that we are speaking of, he is standing before the pregnant Israel, and with a fullness of royalty. He is the god of this world. He is the prince of the power of the air, with complete power over the minds of men. Behind all of the nations stands the Devil. Stars we have seen speak of messengers, angelic beings, it says a third of the angels fell, they became demons.

Now the Child has been born and the dragon’s mouth snaps shut – but he missed. It says he was totally defeated – he failed, the Child was caught up to God and His Throne – the whole finished work of Christ is summed up in His Ascension. Now Christ ascends, and in that Satan has failed.

In Ephesians chapter 19 it says that Christ ascended far above all principalities and powers. Or 1^st Peter chapter 3 says that He made all principalities and powers subject to Him. Since this ascension times have changed. Suddenly, he who had power has lost his power. At that time in chapter 12, it says there was war in Heaven. The war in Heaven was at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

And the Heavens rejoiced. Satan had lost all his power. He once had power, but he has lost it. They overcame him, not by a fight but by the Blood of the Lamb, a fight, which has already been fought. And by the word of their testimony, they overcame the dragon and also they loved not their lives unto death, which is also very significant. It means that sometimes the believer overcomes the Devil by being killed.

However, it says that now he turned his attention to the woman who had given birth to the child. That is the Israel of the New Testament. That is the Bride of God, the Church. It says that she was protected in the wilderness, being given the wings of a great bird, an eagle to fly there. Exodus 19.14 God describes bearing Israel on eagle’s wings out of Egypt. The same idea is brought out in Deuteronomy 32

And it says ‘Out of the Devil’s mouth there came water’ Water is where mans spirit drinks. Remember in I Timothy chapter 4 it says there will be doctrines of demons, so hard on the heels of the Church, comes a spewed out river straight out of the mouth of Satan. If he can’t persecute the Church, he will send a river of the doctrine of demons to sidetrack her. What do you look for in a doctrine of devils? Any doctrine, which sidetracks you to a philosophy, to an idea. Anything that gets you all bound-up in rules regulations, special days, manipulation, control, and forced giving, do this, don’t do that etc. It is a doctrine from the Devil, which sidetracks you from the main issues. Any doctrine that exalts Jesus Christ as Lord, you can rest assured is ok.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Suddenly, the whole scene changes, we are back to the cosmic stage again, although this time it is the raging waters of the sea. Throughout the Old Testament, it is established that the sea in all its raging is likened to the nations of the world. And it says that out from that sea came a great beast, with ten crowned horns, 7 heads full with the names of blasphemy. It had a body like a leopard, it had the feet of a bear, and it had a lion’s mouth. Read Daniel chapter 7 The Church is the body of the Holy Spirit. We are facing here world governments, the body of the Devil.

Every government in this world is included in the "seven" is fullness. The Devil uses each world government in his own unique way. Each and every world government is a part of the beast. Satan wanted to give Jesus the 8^th Head. He said I will give you the Kingdoms of the world.

Who is like the beast? It couldn’t be wrong, it is so powerful. And John looked at it, and suddenly he saw it received a deadly wound. The Kingdoms of this world have become the Kingdoms of the Lord, and of His Christ. Jesus rose again from the dead, and the governments of this world received a deadly wound. The Devil seems as though he’s lost, but the deadly wound is healed, although the governments of this world are smitten at the cross, they are still here until the second coming, and then the government of this world shall be upon his shoulder.

But right now, we stand among the nations of this world and we proclaim that Jesus Christ is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. So, the big beast needs a little helper, and out of the earth came a dear little beast – it looked like a lamb, but spoke like a dragon, and expressed all the authority like the first beast.

The whole of this book is about a Lamb who had been slain. Here is a lamb that has not been slain. The Devil works through a counterfeit church, that talks about Jesus the Lamb, but not the Lamb as it had been slain.

The word anti-Christ means to be over against Him, an alternative if you like. We are a lot closer to anti-Christ in the Sunday religious meetings, than we are down the pub. The religious beast and the government beast, they all work together. That is what Revelations 13 is talking about – beware of the little lamb that bleats like a dragon, but is in fact linked up with the second beast of the satanic trinity. If you face the world governments, you need patience, but when you meet a lamb, you need wisdom, if there is no blood in what it says, it is a false lamb.

It says all those who follow the beast, they are given the mark of the beast, and this mark is 666. What is 6? 7 is the number of fullness, and normally it speaks of God, His fullness and perfection. 6 is certainly the number of man. The day on which man was created – Day number 6. Man who never quite made it to fullness in God. We never reach God’s rest day of 7 except in Christ.

On the coins of the Roman world was the Emperor, with references to his divinity. The early Christians called this the "mark of the beast," and would not handle such coins, and so were excluded from buying and selling, unless they accepted the mark of the beast. Firstly they accepted the mark in their heads, in their thinking, and then they accepted the mark in their hand.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Chapter 14 begins with another look at the 144,000. It said the 144,000 the church, was standing on Mt Zion. Remember when David brought the Ark to that little hill called Mt Zion. From that time on the word ‘Mount Zion’ ceased to be a geographical location, and it became a sign, a word to describe a way of life. The church is seen exalting in God on Mount Zion. And the scripture says, I heard them singing.

The scripture says that when they spoke or sang, it was like the sound of loud thunder, and yet it was as beautiful as many harpists playing. What has happened? We began in Chapter 1 with the solitary Lord of the Universe, and when He spoke His voice was like many waters, but then we were introduced to the preaching of the gospel. Then all of those who were redeemed by His blood, had been drawn into such a union with Himself, that when they sing and praise, you can’t quite make up your mind, is it Him or is it them. They sing as one. One body in Christ. No one could learn the song, except the 144,000 because they worship in truth.

Remember the Altar of incense in the Tabernacle? From that altar clouds of incense were rising, which the people understood to be their praise and their worship to God. So the highest peak of Israel’s worship each day, would be when the Priest would offer the incense, and all the praise of the people would raise to God in that incense. That incense, that golden altar, was right in front of the Throne of God, the Ark of the Covenant. Now it says that all these, the 144,000 – the complete Church, stood before the Throne and sang praise to God. They were the golden incense altars, in the form of people.

‘These are the ones who have not been defiled with women. They are chaste’. Do you remember all through the Old Testament, every time Israel went after another god, or they walked away from God, He said ‘you have played the harlot, you have committed adultery’? All that this symbolic statement is saying is that the Church, the perfect Church of all ages, is as pure as a virgin. Remember what Paul says in his second letter to the Corinthian church, in chapter 10. He says that he has engaged us, as a virgin to Christ.

It says of this Company that they are the first fruits. When the Passover took place, and it was stated that the first day after the Sabbath of the Passover, was the Feast of First fruits. The priests would cut the first fruits and take it to the Temple to be used in worship. Jesus was crucified at Passover. Do you realise that as the Priests went down to cut the first fruits, Jesus rose again from the dead, and He was the first fruit.

It says that no lie was found in their mouth. The grand lie – you shall be as God. That is THE lie, and when we repented, that is what we repented of. And it says they were blameless. Read Ephesians 1 – it says that in Christ, because of our union with Him, we are accepted by God as though we had never sinned.

In verse 6 of this chapter, ‘another angel flew in the Heavens’ and he speaks of this angel preaching the Gospel, the eternal Gospel, calling upon men to fall before their Creator. Any person that ever goes to hell goes there pushing and shoving past the goodness, mercy and grace of God.

It goes down to verse 20, and says the winepress was trodden, and it goes on to say that the blood came out from the winepress. These are no ordinary grapes. This is blood, death, and judgment. And it says up to the horses’ bridles, up to a distance of 200 miles. 1,600 furlongs is equal to 200 miles, and 1,600 furlongs is the correct translation from the Greek. So this is where we find the symbol in the number 1,600.

4 x 4=16 16 x 10 x 10. 4 is the four corners of the world. 4 x 4 is the world and the universe. x 10=completion. x 10=completion, completion. 1,600 furlongs is telling us in the symbolic language of Revelation, that this is the universal, and complete and utter judgment of God.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Do you remember the song of Moses in Exodus 15? The plagues had finished, and Pharaoh like an insane maniac follows Israel to the Red Sea, and there the FINAL judgment came upon Egypt.

The next morning as Israel stood on the other side of the Red Sea, they sang, ‘The Lord has triumphed and cast our enemies into the sea.’ The song of Moses is the Alpha, while the song of the Lamb is Omega. The beginning and the ending of judgements.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The word Armageddon is used only once in the Bible in this chapter. So what is Armageddon in the minds of the Hebrew people? Armageddon is not where a war is going to take place in 2,000 years time. That’s even too stupid to consider. Modern day warfare does not take place with 200 million men fighting in a large field. Armageddon is a large flat plain in Megiddo. This is where in the past armies met, and fought to the bitter end. If you can understand that, the symbolic meaning of Armageddon is the FINAL, FINAL, FINAL conflict. After this conflict there is no other conflict.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The beast is the devil, but who is this woman riding on the back of the beast? We find the Church is called the Bride – we find this woman is called a Harlot – we find that the Bride is called the New Jerusalem. This harlot is called Babylon. So you have two women, the Bride and the Harlot.

We are introduced to the harlot, as usual in this book, by the name that is on her forehead. On her forehead its says ‘Babylon the Great The Mother of Harlots’. This symbol was universal, in the days when John wrote this.

In Genesis chapters 10 and 11 the man you will find is Nimrod, he was the beginning of Babylon, Babylon in the sense of it being an Empire, a Government. Nimrod had a wife, her name was Semiramus. She was extremely beautiful, according to every report we have in history, and she was a harlot of the first order. When Nimrod was killed, she said that Nimrod actually gave his life for the human race, and she called him Zoroastra. That is spelt Z-O-R-O-A-S-T-R-A.

Zoroastra means, ‘The seed of the Woman’ she said Nimrod was the promised Messiah of Genesis 3.15. For that was very fresh in the minds of the people at that time. And he laid down his life to free the human race from any inhibitions or limits, and he has now been deified, and Nimrod was the first human being to be worshipped as a god after his death. But Semiramus decided that if her husband is being worshipped, she had better be worshipped too.

In some strange way, she claimed to be a virgin, and her new born child was her husband Nimrod, born again through her womb, and she had statues erected all through Babylon, with a little child at her breast, and together they were worshipped, and that symbol went throughout the entire world. She was worshipped as the Divine Mother, worshipped as the Great Goddess, worshipped as the Queen of Heaven

Every time God spoke of Babylon in the Old Testament, he spoke of this woman, who had originated idolatry, who was the Mother of Heathendom. She spread her corruption to every nation of the world. Semiramus claimed to have given birth to Nimrod, on December 24^th. And December 25^th was celebrated as Child Day, as far back as 2,000 B.C.

We read in this chapter, that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints. When does this happen then? If you have eyes to see, it is happening every day of every year, at different locations around the world. The great tribulation, is the period of time between the first and Second Coming of Christ.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

The intercourse they had with this woman was expressed in the fact that they could sell their cargoes, and when she is gone, they can’t sell their cargoes any more. Everything from cinnamon to slaves, but business has ceased, because the judgement of God has fallen on this Harlot, called Babylon.

Every shipmaster, every passenger, and sailor, and as many as make a living by the sea, stood at a distance, and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning. In a Roman world, that meant the whole system of travel and communication had crashed.

She is drunk with the blood of saints. Underneath it all is a fist that says, ‘God I hate you, and God I hate your Church’ what is the end of this woman? The end is verse 16, it says the ten horns, the Beast, these will hate the Harlot, and will make her desolate, naked, and will eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

Why? Because at the heart of the whole issue the Devil’s kingdom doesn’t work. There is an alliance between the Beast the Prophet and the Woman – but what is the alliance held together with? ‘I want what you’ve got’ and she says, ‘I want what you’ve got’, and any alliance based on such selfishness, is sure to implode. The Devil’s kingdom does not work.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER NINETEEN

The doctrine of hell in the Bible is a necessity. If I am really going to understand God, in His goodness, in His righteousness, I stand with this crowd, this multitude in the Heavens, and when they see the whole world system collapsing, and they see the fall of sin, and the wrath of God – then they begin with an ecstasy of worship.

It was from this chapter, that the great Hallelujah Chorus, Handel’s Messiah was inspired, it is in adoration, of the God who must and does judge sin. This worship is almost the wedding march. Verse 7 ‘Let us rejoice and be glad and give glory to Him for the marriage of the Lamb has come and the Bride has made herself ready’.

On the one hand, all that have been sealed with the 666 mark of the beast, have been put down, on the other hand, those that have the 777 seal of the Lamb, they have made themselves ready. On the one hand, the Prostitute has been stripped of her glamour; on the other hand, the Bride is prepared for marriage.

Adam and Eve were the first bride and groom. Do you remember, when God took Eve out of the side of Adam, and He presented Eve to Adam after the surgery, He said,’ here is your bride, and Adam said, ‘this woman is bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh’. She is me, but not me; she is me in another form, bone of my bone, self of my self. She’s me, and yet she is different from me. You could say that Adam slept, in order that Eve may live.

When we come to the Cross of Jesus, a Roman soldier came and pierced His side, and out of His side flowed blood and water. Blood speaks of the wiping out of sin, but water, throughout the entire Bible speaks of Life. The last Adam, Jesus, died on the one hand to redeem us from sin, but on the other hand to give life to His Bride. The Church of Jesus came out of the side of Jesus. He died that His Bride might have life. Therefore when I look at the Church, I am looking at Jesus in another form.

In the Old Testament, Israel was called the Bride of Jehovah, but the bride in waiting, always waiting, and now in Christ the Bride has become a reality, so when it says the marriage of the Lamb is come, What does that mean?

To the Hebrews, an engagement was as binding as a marriage. You remember that when Joseph found Mary pregnant, he wanted nothing more to do with her, even though they were not married, he had to get a bill of divorce to end it. So an engagement was not a period before the final commitment. An engagement, was the final commitment.

In Genesis chapter 24, Abraham sends out his servant to find a bride for his son Isaac. This is a beautiful picture, of God the Father sending the Holy Spirit to find the bride of Christ, the church.

The Holy Spirit has come to us – you have never seen Jesus – but all the same you love Him, and we are now rejoicing with unspeakable joy, the engagement has taken place, Paul says that in II Corinthians. 10, he has engaged us as a virgin to Christ. The engagement of which there is no breaking has taken place. The engagement was followed by a period of time, in which they did not see each other. This period of time is between the first and second coming of Christ. This period of time, is discussed all the way through the book of Revelation

So in this chapter, we have the picture of the Groom coming to meet the Bride. In verse 11 He rides the white horse, the gospel in order to gather His Bride. Now He comes to collect His Bride, that is the idea here. And as He comes now to take His Bride, He has many diadems. They have all been taken from the head of the Dragon, and they are now on the head of the Lord Jesus. The devil was the god of this world, but now Jesus is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. And the whole universe shall know that things are not what they seem to be.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER TWENTY

An angel came from Heaven and bound the Devil with a chain. You try and bind a spirit with a chain, the idea is ridiculous! Whatever that chain was, it had to be a spiritual chain. What spiritual chain can bind Satan then? The most elementary Christian knows that it is the finished work of Christ that has bound the Devil. That is certainly the first and most important part of this Vision. Who is that messenger? Every other angel in the book of Revelation was given a key. Here is an angel or messenger who has a key in his own right. We met that person in chapter 1 verse 18 who said ‘ I have the keys of death and Hades’.

In Colossians 2.15, it tells us that He brought to the Cross, all of the powers of the Devil, and when he had brought them all together, he stripped them publicly and declared victory over all of them. Or perhaps even stronger than that, is Hebrews 2.14 where it says; that through death He destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the Devil.

In 1st John 3. 8 it says that Jesus Christ was manifested in order that He might destroy the works of the Devil. The one person, who claimed He had come to this earth to bind the Devil, has truly bound Satan. The devil can no longer hold a fog over the minds of men.

What about the 1,000 years? What is a thousand? 10 x 10 x 10. We have seen that 10 is the number of completeness. 3 times means this is COMPLETENESS! COMPLETENESS! COMPLETENESS!

So this period is that period of completion, that period of finality. Nothing else can be added to it. This is the period of time between the first and second coming of Christ. IT IS FINISHED! IT IS FINISHED! IT IS FINISHED!

The first resurrection is very simple to explain. Do you remember in Ephesians 2, v 5 and 6? It states we who were dead in our trespasses and sins, have been raised together with Christ. The whole chapter 6 of Romans, Paul speaks with almost mock horror! Don’t you know those who have been baptised into Christ have been baptised into His death and resurrection? And when John now speaks of the first resurrection, that resurrection takes place in our spirits when we are born again. You are raised with Christ.

There is a period at the end, when Satan is released. Remember the Egyptian plagues? It was FINISHED with the death of the first born, as it was FINISHED with the death of Christ! The king of Egypt the pharaoh was totally and utterly defeated. As was the king of this world the devil, totally and utterly defeated.

The Pharaoh was released from his defeat, to chase the children of God, and then the judgement came upon the Pharaoh. In the same way the devil has been released from his defeat, to chase the children of God, between the first and Second Coming of Christ, and then the judgement for the devil.

God loosed Pharaoh, in order that he may be totally forever out of the lives of God’s people. Why then the loosing of Satan? So that Satan like Pharaoh may be forever, throughout all eternity known as the defeated loser. So Satan’s release is between the 1^st and 2^nd coming of Christ.

What is God’s main concern? His Bride. And what is the Devil’s chief hatred? The Church! The last battle, the final, final conflict is Armageddon, which is the on-going battle of preaching the good news that the battle has already been won at the cross of Christ, and even in death, the Christian is victorious.

The devil walks around as a roaring lion. A roaring lion is not to be feared! A silent lion that is creeping up on you is to be feared. Oppose the devil and he will flee.

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The word ‘new’ there does not mean new, it means to rejuvenate and so he says, I saw a rejuvenated earth and a rejuvenated heaven. It was new, it was the old one, but it had been made completely over again. He also states there is no sea; there are no more turbulent nations.

The Bible teaches us very plainly, that we have already come to the New Jerusalem. In Hebrews chapter 12 you have these words, ‘that you have come – past tense - to Mount Zion and to the City of the Living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem. So the Church today is called the Heavenly Jerusalem’. Remember that in Galatians, he speaks of the Jerusalem, which is below, and the Jerusalem, which is above. He speaks of the Jerusalem, which is below, as the whole legalistic system of dead religion. But he says that the Jerusalem which is above, that is the promised seed, that is the one who is free, living in the grace of God.

II Corinthians 5.17 ‘the old things have passed away; look everything has become new, he says, for we are new creations in Christ. The whole building exists in the mind of the architect. He sees it complete. He then draws plans based on what he has already seen. The plans are drawn, and then the builders start to lay the foundations, and you see big holes, bulldozers here, and bricks over there, and you say – what a mess!

But all the architect can see, is the finished article. Somewhere on the site, you will see the architect’s vision. So in the mind of God, the Church existed before time began. He then drew up the plans, which we call the Eternal Purposes of God. He then brought in the bulldozers, which we call the nation of Israel, and then He laid the foundation in Jesus Christ, and now the church is being built on that foundation.

Hebrews chapter 11 ‘By faith Abraham lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow-heirs of the same promise – for he was looking for a city with buildings whose architect and builder was God.

That City is the Church, the piece of land we call Israel was important only until Jesus was born, and when He was born He said ‘I will build my Church’ and the Promised Land is the Church. My Kingdom is not of this world; or else my servants would have fought. My City does not rise out of the earth – my City comes down from Heaven. This is a City that is in union with the eternal light of God. Or as II Corinthians puts it, we have this treasure in earthen vessels. You are the vessel; the glory of God is the treasure.

1,500 miles, is equal to 12,000 furlongs. The correct translation from the Greek is 12,000 furlongs. Now you are back to 12. We have met 12 over and over again. So what is 12000? 3x4=12, 12, x 10 x 10 x 10. But why the cube? There are only two other places in the Bible where you have such a cube. In 1^stKings 6.20 ‘The inner sanctuary, that is the Holy of Holies was 20 cubits in length, 20 cubits in width, 20 cubits in height, and overlaid with gold.’ The second place the cube is mentioned, was the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s Temple.

The New Jerusalem, the Church, is presented to us as a perfect cube, and the only other cube mentioned in the Bible is the Holy of Holies. What he is stating, is that the church is the Holy of Holies among men. In chapter 21 verse 3 it tells us that very plainly. It says ‘then I heard a voice from Heaven saying, ‘The Tabernacle of God is with men, and He shall dwell among them, they shall be His people.’

So that Holy of Holies, where the glory of God is on earth, is no longer a geographical location, it is rather a company of people. In Samaria, John chapter 4 it says speaking of the Temple in Samaria, and the Temple in Jerusalem at that time, Jesus said that ‘the day is coming in fact now is when those who worship God will no longer worship Him in this mountain or that mountain, but you will worship Him in Spirit and in Truth’. He said that there is a day coming, when the worship of God will not be conducted in a single geographical location. Wherever God chooses that His glory shall be – there is your Temple, and God has chosen, that it shall be in the midst of His praising people.

The symbolic walls in this city are 12,000 furlongs high. Walls speak of two things, which are separation, and safety. The Devil cannot get inside the Holy of Holies. The Satanic Trinity can’t get through these walls. 1^st John puts it like this, because of our faith in Christ, we have come to that rest in Him, and the wicked one touches him not.

It says in v.14 ‘and the Wall of the City had 12 foundation stones, and on them were the 12 names of the 12 Apostles of the Lamb. The foundation of the Church is always stated in the New Testament to be the 12 Apostles and their teaching.

The 12 gates – were 12 pearls. Each one of the gates was a single pearl, the names of the 12 tribes of Israel, were written on the gates. A pearl is the strongest of all precious stones. Every other precious stone is made by pressure and heat.

A pearl is made by blood and suffering. A bit of grit gets into the shell of the oyster, and causes excruciating pain, and in the blood gradually a pearl is formed, but the creature has to die, to give birth to the pearl. That is the way into the Holy of Holies. Through blood, suffering and death. It is the Pearl of Great Price. Jesus said, I am the door. I am the way; no man comes to the Father but by Me.

Chapter 21.19 states, the foundation stones of the City Wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. There are 12 of them. If you could stand off from that city, and look through those 12 colours, it would be like looking at a rainbow. Bands of glory. The Church reflects the rainbow. You just take a quick look at the Church, and you will see the mercy of God.

The geographical location of Israel and the natural descendants of Israel have nothing. The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This book is about God’s Son Jesus; it is Israel by the Blood of the Lamb that has something, that is the Israel of God. The Israel of God, is all of the old and New Testament believers, that have the faith of Abraham. The New Jerusalem, the True Church, the Heavenly Jerusalem. The river of life is forever the Holy Spirit, running right through the centre of this New Jerusalem.

The Tree of Life, is none other than the Lord Jesus. And it says that if you eat of the leaves of that Tree, you will be healed. ‘I am the Bread of Life’. He is the Bread that came down from Heaven,

PLEASE STOP THE TAPE AND READ CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

The Bible began in a garden, and the Bible ends in a garden.

(END OF THE TAPE)

More tape transcripts on Revelation by Malcolm Smith, which I highly recommend.